Published in conjunction with the Legion of Valor of the United States of America, this book tells stories about our military heroes from the Civil War onward. They relate personal accounts and reflections on combat and war from members of the Legion of Valor of the Unites States of America, Inc. and their friends. Courage in Combat explores the concept of courage through aspects of the lives, thoughts, and actions of this elite group. They are recipients of the Medal of Honor, the Distinguished Service Cross, the Navy Cross, and the Air Force Cross. Their awards are our nation’s highest military decorations, given only to one in 20,000 combatants. Among them are sergeants and generals as well as corpsmen, civilians, engineers, “grunts,” and paratroopers. There are men and women, a mess attendant, aviators, spies and POWs, a cavalry scout, candidates for sainthood, and a President of the United States.
This book also includes a short history of this unique group, America’s oldest military service organization, and an extensive list of its members, past and present.
Courage in Combat discusses the nature of courage, explores the different ways in which courage is shown, and celebrates the courage shown by these recipients, most of whom would say, “I was just doing my job.”
Foreword Joseph L. Galloway
Acknowledgements
Preface
Introduction: Golden Deeds
OF HEROES AND COMBAT
Heroism
Karl Marlantes, Navy Cross
Heroes of the Vietnam Generation
James Webb, Navy Cross
The Context of Courage for Infantry in Vietnam
Lieutenant Colonel Barry D. Gasdek, USA Ret., Distinguished Service Cross
Battle at Camp A Shau 1966
Bennie G. Adkins, USA, Medal of Honor
Taming the Wild West
William Frederick Cody, “Buffalo Bill,” Medal of Honor
Hit, Hit, and Hit Again
S. Donald Singelstad, Distinguished Service Cross
Days of Valor: An Inside Account of the Bloodiest Six Months of the Vietnam War
Robert L. Tonsetic, Distinguished Service Cross
To Serve, and To Sacrifice
Jared C. Monti, USA, Medal of Honor
Vietnam Letters
Daniel P. Garcia and General Barry R. McCaffrey, USA Ret., Distinguished Service Cross
Memories of Dai Do
Brigadier General William Weise, USMC Ret., Navy Cross
Combat
Lieutenant Colonel Richard J. Rinaldo, USA Ret., Distinguished Service Cross
Revenge
William E. Davis III, USNR, Navy Cross
Millett’s Charge
J. C. Bean
George S. Patton As We Knew Him
Brigadier General John C. “Doc” Bahnsen, USA Ret., Distinguished Service Cross
The Unknown Legend
Colonel Peter J. Ortiz, USMC, Navy Cross With Gold Star
Lance Corporal Benjamin Harris
Fighting on the Long, Hard Road
James Megellas, Distinguished Service Cross
Operation Red Wings
Michael P. Murphy, USN, Medal of Honor
Keep Your Boots On
Jill Jorden Spitz
Valor at Oahu
Tim Frank
The Silver Cross for Valor
AWARDS AND DECORATIONS
“Gallantry and Intrepidity”
Valor Decorations in Current and Past Conflicts
Eileen Chollet
Recognizing Valor
Lieutenant Colonel Richard J. Rinaldo, USA Ret., Distinguished Service Cross
A Medal of Honor for a Vietnam-era Air Force Pilot?
Fred L. Borch
Cherishing Valiant Deeds
Honorary Member B. G. Burkett
Introduction to the Army and Navy Legion of Valor of the United States of America
Frank La Fayette Anders, Medal of Honor
FIDELITY
History of the American Gold Star Mothers, Inc.
Judy C. Campbell
Repatriation of a Hero from Korea
Lieutenant Colonel Donald C. Faith, Medal of Honor
David Vergun
America Needs the Legion of Valor
Vice Admiral J. Paul Reason
Preserving the History of Valor Awards
Honorary Member C. Douglas Sterner
Making D-Day Work
Leonard G. “Bud” Lomell, Distinguished Service Cross
America’s Greatest Female Spy of World War II
Virginia Hall, Distinguished Service Cross
The Admiral’s Legacy
Jeremiah Denton’s life and work
Commander Joseph McInerney
Leading and Inspiring Prisoners of War
Admiral James B. Stockdale, Medal of Honor
Rocky the Reactionary
Captain Humbert R. Versace, Medal of Honor
C. Douglas Sterner
Determined Assault on Hill 329
Willis Jackson, Distinguished Service Cross
Father of the Disabled American Veterans
Robert S. Marx, Distinguished Service Cross
Pioneer, Fighter, Trainer
Kurt Chew-Een Lee, Navy Cross
Six Seconds
Lieutenant General John F. Kelly, USMC
Returning Fire at Pearl Harbor
Doris Miller, Navy Cross
The Roosevelt Medals of Honor
Fighter Ace and Prisoner of War
Robinson Risner, Air Force Cross
Taking Charge of Tough Jobs
Harvey C. Barnum, Jr., Medal of Honor
Ranger Hall of Fame
Richard D. “Tex” Wandke, Distinguished Service Cross
Robert L. Tonsetic, Distinguished Service Cross
Volunteers at the “Home of the Legion of Valor”
FORTITUDE
Medics, Medevacs, and Chaplains
Lieutenant Colonel Richard J. Rinaldo, USA Ret., Distinguished Service Cross
Combat Medic’s Requiem
John J. Duffy, Distinguished Service Cross
Incredible Medevacs in Vietnam
Michael J. Novosel, Medal of Honor
Peter Dorland
Army Chaplain Who Saved Prisoners of War
Father Emil J. Kapuan, Medal of Honor
David Vergun
Daring Rescue at Kham Duc
Lieutenant Colonel Joe M. Jackson, Medal of Honor
C. Douglas Sterner
Saving Lives Under Fire in the Vietnam Jungle
Claude C. “Pete” Quick, Distinguished Service Cross
Conscientious Objector Who Saved Lives on Okinawa
PFC Desmond T. Doss, Medal of Honor
Robert L. Ampula
Saving Wounded Marines in Iraq
Hospitalman Luis E. Fonseca Jr., Navy Cross
Raymond L. Applewhite
What is a Navy Corpsman?
Robert Cowan
Navy Chaplain on the Front Lines
Father Vincent Capodanno, Medal of Honor
Doyle D. Glass
Nurses on the Western Front
The Combat Medic Prayer
Woman Ahead of Her Time
Mary Edwards Walker, Medal of Honor
Rudi Williams
Pararescue in Afghanistan
Senior Airman Jason Dean Cunningham, Air Force Cross
FATE, FORTUNE AND FUN
James B. Morehead Saves a Bomber Base
Hot Sauce
Colonel Philip C. Conran, USAF, Ret., Air Force Cross
Tennessee Two-Step
A Small Incident in a Large War
Roger Norland
George H. W. Bush the “Ace,” The Night the Lights Went Out at Vladivostok, and The Lobster Run
William C. Raposa, USN, Ret., Navy Cross with Gold Star
“The Whole Damn Battlefield is my Monument”
Major General Daniel E. Sickles, Medal of Honor
Chivalry or Certain Doom Above Germany
Charles L. Brown, Air Force Cross
FINAL THINGS
Memorial
Brigadier General William J. Mullen III, USA Ret., Distinguished Service Cross
Some Suffer in Survival
Colonel Bruce W. Reagan, Distinguished Service Cross
A Life’s Passion
Lieutenant Colonel Thomas A. Richards, USMC, Ret., Navy Cross
Ode to Joe
Joseph Bruni
Dead Soldiers’ Breath
Ron Tranmer
Honoring Rabbi Roland B. Gittelsohn and His Stirring Eulogy on Iwo Jima
Bruce Braley
Last Retreats
Epilogue
Lieutenant Colonel Richard D. Wandke, US Army
APPENDICES
Appendix 1
A Brief History of the Legion Of Valor
Appendix 2
Books and Sites by or about Members and Friends of the Legion of Valor
Appendix 3
Members Past and Present and Volunteers